yes it is quite possible a plugged cat caused the problem if you got a blown head gasket. How long has the cat been plugged you got any idea?

 

well the cat has less then a 1000 on it so it couldnt have been that long

 

is it really a good idea to have a rebuild after a blown headgasket or is that not necessary?

 

Just because the cat is low mialage dont mean it cant be clogged. If you had a blown head gasket before replacing the cat extra water / steam in the exhaust could have elevated the temp enough to melt the cat. Question i have to ask is why di you replace the cat. I would say you could get by with having your heads check for flatness and cracks and milled if necessary and replace the head gaskets and hed bolts if you are trying to get by on the cheap. That is under one condition, there is no antifreeze in the oil.
just my 2 pennies

(only 1 penny cause i am broke after the strip club)

 

cats? we dont need no stinkin cats.

 

after i installed the jethot lt's i had a y-pipe made up and went to two cats hence the new cats. the driverside cat seems to be the one falling apart, would it be a safe bet that thats the side thats got the blown gasket?

 

yessah

 

I would pull both heads and have them both pressure and flatness tested to be safe. And get some new cats of good quality or better yet leave them off if you dont have emmissions.

Plugged cat? WHAT??? do a search on my replys on plugged cats!

 

how hard is it to pull the heads? is it something i should have done or can i do it and save some cash (poor college kid who just blew all his money on new trans here)

 

pulling heads is a decent job in itself. im not even sure if i want to take it on yet and im about to do a cam install myself.

well i suppose its pretty straightforward, but once theyre off youll want to have them pressure checked, as stated before, and resurfaced.

 

thanks for all the help guys! i think ill just have it towed up to the shop tomorrow and have my guy take a look at it.
at this point im so fed up with my car and this hobby i think i may just sell it, buy a civic and take up basket weaving. iv never heard of any one dumpng thousands into a hi-performance basket

 

man, i feel your pain. got mine out on a engine stand right now. blew a headgasket due to a failed fan relay and literaly 2 minutes of not looking at the temp gauge. now, couple of grand later, im getting ready to bolt up a fresh ringed/bearing stock bored lt1 with a cc306, long tubes, blah blah blah.

moral of the story, its an expensive hobby, but if it were easy, everone would be doing it